Swimming and water sports are very popular activities. Many people are unable to participate in these activities, however, due to medical conditions, such as epilepsy and other neurological conditions, which put them at risk of drowning. While such individuals could wear conventional flotation devices, such as foam vests or inflated vests or arm cuffs, such devices interfere with water activities. For example, such devices are typically cumbersome and hinder body motion, and further make swimming difficult, particularly under water. While inflatable vests, such as those that use carbon dioxide cartridges, are available on the market, they must be manually activated to inflate. Unfortunately, the user may not be able to activate the vest when the user is experiencing a medical emergency, such as a seizure.
From the above discussion, it can be appreciated that it would be desirable to have a personal flotation device that can provide buoyancy to an individual experiencing a medical event, such as a seizure, which does not interfere with normal water activity in which the individual is participating and which does not require the individual to activate.